Have you ever tried eating a banana with utensils? When I was younger, at my school it was a thing! Strange right?
Though we had a strange way of eating them, we knew even then that bananas are amazing and delicious and great for you! Do you ever wonder how to include them in our daily diet? I have a few ideas, but before we get to that, I’m going to teach you a bit about bananas.
A single banana is said to contain only 85/90 calories, which makes it a great and healthy snack to munch on instead of sugar loaded goodies or deep-fried treats. Also, due to its high levels of tryptophan that the body converts to serotonin (translated means good feelings and good mood) bananas can also be very helpful in overcoming depression.
Bananas also contain vitamin B6 which helps you sleep well, and magnesium that helps relax muscles. Basically, bananas are great to have on hand at all times, especially when you need something fast as well as healthy. They’re packed with potassium, antioxidants, vitamins, biotin and minerals that nourish your hair and skin.
Here are some of the many benefits of bananas:
- The vitamin A in bananas restores moisture and repairs dry skin.
- Bananas also keeps your hair moisturized and well hydrated! They offer many natural benefits to keep your hair looking fabulous, like their folic acid that makes hair shine!
- High blood pressure is a silent killer, the effects include aneurysms, narrowing of the arteries, heart disease, brain disease, and stroke. One way to lower your blood pressure is to consume more potassium— and one banana contains about 12 percent of your daily value of potassium!
When I lived in Spain, I used to walk along the seashore often. I love walking on the beach, feeling the sand in-between my toes, I could do it for hours! One particular day my beach walking led me to desperately need a pedicure. On the wonderful Costa Brava beach, where I walked for hours, I saw the back of my heel take the shape and texture of a rock!
Worried about how my feet were looking, I went to the pharmacy and bought everything available for dry feet!
Unfortunately, my feet did not improve as fast I expected. Later on, standing in line at the grocery store still self-conscious of my feet and looking for a remedy, a kind woman gave me a solution—bananas!
Visibly confused, I asked, “I’m sorry, did you say bananas?”
She answered seriously like an encyclopedia, “The nourishing banana pulp will give you soft feet young lady, bananas are great for treating dry, cracked heels. Go home, mash two ripe bananas and apply to clean dry feet. Wrap them up (each foot) in an individual plastic bag, leave it on for 20 minutes, then rinse feet with warm salt water. And do it ones a week-- forever!”
I picked up a few bananas, some to eat and some for this new treatment, and I ran home to try it out. It worked wonders! So back to the beach I went, but now with perfectly smooth feet.
Another fun fact about bananas, is that their peels also help relieve the itch from poison ivy when used the same way.
The sugars in a banana peel help to remove the liquid from the stings of mosquitoes that itch as well. Start by cleaning the affected area with water and soap, then rubbing the inside of the peel on the bite. It works beautifully with children especially when they are in the age of "not being able to stop scratching". It’s something effective that works wonders! Trust me.
Don’t fret, I didn’t forget about those tips for incorporating bananas into your diet! Along with these amazing benefits, bananas work in so many dishes! Because they are great cooked, raw, cold or hot their kitchen uses are endless!
You can:
- Add bananas to oatmeal or any other warm breakfast cereal
- Bananas are great in smoothies! They add texture and flavor
- Make a acai bowl! Add banana, strawberries, chia seeds, and a spoonful of your favorite nut butter!
- Baked bananas! Cut your bananas in half, place under the oven at 400 degrees and sprinkle with cinnamon, you’ll have a yummy treat everyone will want to try!
- When it gets warm out, peel a banana, dip it in some melted dark chocolate and place it in your freezer for about 6 hours. You’ll have yummy chocolate banana pops that will make a fudgsicle just seem silly
So run out, grab some bananas and get ready to have radiant skin, and a full belly!
